What enterTAYned me this week

I wish I could say that Big Brother entertained me this week or even this season but so far I’ve found it to be predictable and annoying. Does Brittany really think she is playing the game? Do any of the coaches really think they have control of their players? And if they do have control of those players, shame on the players.

Janelle did a fabulous job at the coaches competition, she’d give Gene Simmons a run for his money with the tongue control she has. On that note I have to say that there was a competition I could have lived happily not seeing.

This week I read a teen paranormal book that I LOVED I can’t wait for August when the next one comes out.

Storm: The Elemental series by Brigid Keemerer was a new take on people who can control the elements, usually a talent reserved for witches and sorcerers but in this case,  four boys in their teens and early twenties who have lost their parents because of the fear their powers evoke in people.

On her way out of a self-defense class Becca happens upon two guys beating the crap out of another one. Without known why she steps into the fray running off the guys with her car and the threat that she called the police. Thus life as she knew it will never be the same. All the elements you expect are here. She is unsure of her feelings for two different guys. Chris and Hunter are so very different how is a girl supposed to know who to trust? There are major disagreements with her best friend and bullies to contend with and yet it seemed like a whole new world to me. One I can not wait to explore further. I am very excited that the second one comes out in August and so I don’t have long to wait. I was also thrilled to be able to read Michael’s story in the novella called Elemental and to discover that another novella called Fearless will be available tomorrow (July 31) thereby making the wait seem shorter.

My one problem with the book is the cover. The boy on the cover of Storm does not look like the youngest of the brothers who is the hero of this story, he looks like one of the twins. Also the twins don’t look identical which according to story line is inaccurate. Gabriel pretends to be Nick so that he can play on more than one sports team at school. None of this is vastly important in the grand scheme of things nor is it enough to make me stop reading the series especially since they seem to have done a better job on book 2’s cover.

On Saturday I finally got around to watching 21 Jumpstreet starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill. Though I didn’t find it as funny as many had lead me to believe it was I did enjoy it. I am a Channing Tatum fan and greatly enjoy the moments in a movie when he is just silly like in the band room. I also immensely enjoyed the big reveal during the big take down. I have to say I probably should have seen it coming but I really didn’t.  I look forward to seeing it again.

The most entertaining thing I saw this weekend though was the Pub Crawl I attended. As previously mentioned I work in a book store. Every year we have a pub crawl and we try to make our shirts book related with no mention of the company we work for. One year our shirts said Accio Beer! for those who don’t know that’s a Harry Potter reference. This year we had to pay homage to the best selling book out there so our shirts were grey with a tie on them and the title was Fifty Shades of Drunk. You can imagine the amount of comments we received while walking around town. At one pub a group was sitting on the patio and the guy asked what our shirts said. When I told him he asked what it meant while his girlfriend/date started laughing so I just smiled and said, “She knows. Ask her.” Besides the fun of the t-shirts it was my second oldest nieces’s first pub crawl (she turned 19 in March) and I had so much fun sharing the evening with her. It was a great evening with amazing co-workers, friends and family.

If you had to make a book related t-shirt for a pub crawl what would yours say?

13….. The End Of an Era

Just about 11 years ago I went from being a Nanny to working at  a bookstore and the box office of  a 1,000 seat theatre.  I enjoyed both jobs and met many interesting people. One of the girls I worked with at the box office introduced me to a book called Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. While we all exchanged favourtie book or authors and I made many new favourites because of it, the Kelley Armstrong series was a game changer for me.

It became the book I recommended to ANYONE looking for a great paranormal read. If you were a fan of Laurell K Hamilton I was suggesting you read Kelley Armstrong.  All before Twilight hit the world. Then I found out she was doing a teen trilogy. Imagine my joy at being given the opportunity to read the manuscript! Did I mention that Kelley writes so well that the crawl space scene in The Summoning gave me goosebumps in broad daylight? I was thrilled when they released it before Breaking Dawn came out and it had the chance to snag some fans. Then Kelley came to our store to promote No Humans Involved. It was a great year!! Can you  see why I call it a game changer for me?

Bitten is the story of Elena Michaels, the world’s only knowing female werewolf. She has left the pack to make a life for herself and she’s tired of it. By returning to the pack she starts to find her place in the world, and what a world it is. Kelley Armstrong’s Women of the Otherworld series is an incredible journey of magic, mystery and romance. Her characters are such that you feel like you’ve made a new friend or friends.  You cheer for them, jeer at them and hope all goes well for them. Through the years  the series has brought me many new friends as we started discussing the Otherworld.

You might think that reading 13, the final book of the series would be a sad or bittersweet moment and it certainly could have been. I tell you in all honesty that when I received a copy of 13 a couple of weeks ago I was feeling very trepidatious  about reading it. These books had been part of my life for 10 years and though there were a couple that weren’t my favourite and a moment or two where I thought they might have jumped the shark, they never did. What if it happened here, now in the finale? What would I say to the Random House Rep when she came to the store? To my fellow fans and friends at the store? To the author when she came in September?

I started reading and set the book down. Started again and set it aside. Finally I picked it up and began reading, really reading. From that point on I had to make myself stop and savour the story so I wouldn’t just plow right through. And I kicked myself for ever having doubted.

I don’t want to spoil anything for those who haven’t read it yet so I will just say that it picks up where Spellbound left off. Savannah and the gang are still looking for the missing kid and those who are behind the movement to expose Paranormal beings to the rest of the world. All your favourite characters are here to play the roles they were born to play.  It’s a great ride full of just the right amount of ups, downs, steep hills, dramatic curves and gut wrenching loop the loops before you arrive safely into the station.

As a long time reader of the series, as well as Kelley’s other works, I was very satisfied with 13. It wraps the  series up nicely with lots of leeway for the characters to pop up as needed in other stories or even down the road in another story line.

I am most excited to have others read it so I will finally have someone to share it with!

Strange and Unusual and Kind of Funny

At work the other day a colleague was telling me about this video someone had done of Michael Buble’s Just Haven’t Met You Yet where they take his video but change the words of the song to other words.

She posted the video on my wall and I found myself shaking my head in disbelief while laughing at the same time.  It’s silly and not very flattering but I enjoyed it anyway.

Have a look and if you have a favourite similar type video you think I should see, tell me about it!

Hodge Podge of Entretainment

I realized today that it has been awhile since I posted and I decided that I needed to write something immediately. The problem is that I don’t have anything that I felt I just had to share.

I was very excited to enter a contest to win fabulous prizes from Meagan Spooner.  To celebrate the release of her amazing story Skylark she is hosting The Sky’s The Limit Contest which you can enter here http://www.meaganspooner.com/the-skys-the-limit-contest-for-skylark/ but I’ve already blogged and tweeted about that and really the fewer of you who know about the better my chances of winning.

I read a long awaited book and was thrilled by it but as it’s still two weeks away from release date I’m not allowed to discuss it. Ah the joy and anguish of receiving advanced copies!

I didn’t go see any new movies this week al though I did watch St. Trinian’s during Coast2Coast Movie Night on Friday and that was a lot of fun. Rupert Everett and Colin Firth lead a star-studded cast in a delightful teen angst romp where the girls of St. Trinan’s are a wild but lovable bunch trying to save their school. Colin Firth is the minister trying to shut it down and Rupert Everett plays both the Head Mistress and her brother.

I haven’t seen the second one yet and apparently there is a third in development. This movie is one of those cult classics that I love and for $2.99 well worth the cost as I will watch it many times over.

I bought some new Kameleon pieces from their new line. These are more stone then silver therefore less expensive while still beautiful. Gotta love less expensive when you are addicted to this gorgeous line of jewellery.

 

This is the pendant I bought but not the pop.

This week brought the  new season of Big Brother with all it’s twist and turns but as we’re only two episodes in and their hasn’t been too much drama I don’t have much too say about it. Yeah Yeah Yeah Dude is Russell’s brother, big whoop. I’m torn about the coaches thing. I like most of the coaches they brought back but seriously can’t they just have new contestants.  The most exciting thing about last night’s show was finding out that next year we will have Big Brother Canada!

I also started watching The Glee Project. I came in on the third episode and there is a some great talent this year. The mash up’s  that they’ve done were so much fun and seeing Jane Lynch on the last episode (out of her Sue track suit) was very entertaining. The problem is that most of them feel or look like characters that are on the show. Charlie looks like Finn (especially in the video for Moves Like Jagger/Milkshake).

Abraham could be Mike Chang, Aylin could be Sugar (all be it with a better voice), Blake is another Sam, and so on. That’ s not to say that they aren’t good but it feels like been there done that. Nellie is great with a different look then characters we’ve already seen and Lily is fabulous. It will be interesting to see who wins and how they are integrated into the show. Sadly I found out today that Damian McGinty from last year’s Glee Project will not be back  next season.

The other thing that ‘enterTAYned’me this week was learning how to change chords during my guitar lesson. After some practice I am able to go from G to E Minor to C and then D. Not smoothly or even well but I can do it. Now the challenge of learning a different order.

And on that note maybe I should go practice.

 

Smart Chicks Kick It Tour 2012

I am lucky enough to be working at a store that will be hosting The Smart Chicks Kick It Tour in September. For many people it’s a thrill to meet a favourite author but if you live in a large metropolis it’s something you might take for granted.

For those of us here in Dartmouth/Halifax Novas Scotia, it doesn’t happen too often. While it’s getting somewhat better, those who promote big name authors (or even concerts) seem to forget that there are fans who live East of Montreal. I get it. Really I do. You go where you’ll be able to get the most bang for your buck!

It means something special to have an event like this in Dartmouth because it is such a rarity.

In a little over 2 months we will be hosting these wonderful authors and it is incredible to see the complete awe on some of the teens faces when we tell them who is going to be here. And let’s not forget the adult fans of many of these authors, they are as excited as the teens.

So if you are in the Dartmouth area on September 16th, 2012 at 2pm come on over to Chapters Dartmouth at Mic Mac Mall and meet one of these fantastic authors. Enjoy a Q&A period with the authors and maybe win a fabulous prize!

The Amazing Skylark Contest

Meagan Spooner the author of Skylark an incredible yet to be released YA novel is having an amazing contest to celebrate the release of Skylark.

I suggest you head on over to her site http://www.meaganspooner.com/the-skys-the-limit-contest-for-skylark/ and enter, or don’t because I’d REALLY like to win! 🙂

If you like Hunger Games, Divergent, Delirium and books of that ilk you will devour Skylark! So original and well written I can’t wait to start selling it to all my regulars and my teen book club! 

When a Great Book Just Won’t Let Go

This picture was posted recently on facebook by Mary Balogh one of my favourite Historical Romance authors and I just had to share it.

Anybody who calls themselves a reader knows this feeling. When you’ve read a story and it touches something inside you, so much so that you can’t stop thinking about it.

This happened to me in March when I read the Chaos Walking Trilogy which as anyone who knows me can tell you they are thoroughly sick of hearing about at this point. I went into it with a ‘this is something to read mindset” and it completely blew me away. It’s a difficult thing trying to explain what it is that struck me so forcefully. I find it really well written because it not only  flows so very smoothly but the descriptive phrasing puts you in the thick of things.

It was also unlike anything I had read before, sci-fi without the sci-fi. It has all the elements that make a great story into a phenomenon. A read that both sexes can enjoy, an epic quest adventure leading to the ultimate showdown between good and evil. A romance without all the “I hope he likes me, why doesn’t she see me, kissy kissy” stuff.  And of course a lesson, a morality tale if you will about how we treat each other and the world around us. How one person no matter their age or size can make a difference if they believe in themselves.

After thinking about it I realized that most of the books I’ve read that leave me feeling, as the pictures seems to state, wrapped up in them have all had those elements. Whether it be a classic like Anne of Green Gables or Little Women, Danielle Steele’s Palomino (which I read as a teen), Harry Potter or Meridian (both of which are books aimed at the teen market yet I read them as an adult) or The Poky Little Puppy and Bread and Jam for Frances ( books I loved as a child), they all have those same attributes that made me feel as though I had been immersed in the story, made friends with the characters and had managed to stop something bad from happening in order to save the world or at least a small part of it.

What more can you ask for?

What stories have stayed with you long after you’ve read them?

 

The Return of Great Canadian Music

In the 80’s there were numerous well known Canadian rock and pop bands. Too many to name here, ok not really, I just don’t feel like doing it.

While watching MuchMusic tonight I realized it’s happening again. Excluding Justin Bieber , which I’m only doing because he’s a phenomenon, in a different league than these other acts. Whether or not he’s good isn’t the point here.

There is a plethora of great talent out there that we should be supporting.

The first that comes to mind in Jesse LaBelle. If you haven’t heard of him I’m not surprised but believe me you will. For awhile he was sort of behind the scenes as a song writer. His second album comes out in August and I love his new single. Sadly no matter how hard I try I can not get the video embedded but follow the link, it’s worth it! Someone tell Jesse to get himself a Vevo channel!

Heartbreak Coverup featuring Alyssa Reid

http://www.muchmusic.com/music/playlist/pid/63921/fresh-videos

My favourite song is Perfect Accident off his first album.

Another of the Great Canadian Groups is Marianas Trench. If you haven’t heard of them by now I don’t know why. Not only is their music great but their videos are done incredibly well. Full of pop culture moments that make them really fun to watch!

Marianas Trench has a new video for Desperate Measures

but one of my faves is Celbrity Status

The third band on the list is not one that I listen to a lot.  I have listed them here because they are a big selling act.   Hedley is a band with many fans and even though I am not typically one of them I do really enjoy their song Invincible

Finally, I present to you Shawn Hook, a performer I’ve only recently discovered, again thanks to MuchMusic.

and for everyone who remembers We’re Not Going To Take It or You Gotta Fight For your Right (To Party) listen to Shawn’s song Middle Finger.

I’ve shared some of great Canadian Talent faves with you now it’s your turn to share some with me. Let me knowwhich acts you think I should check out next.

Dinner is served

A friend posted this on facebook recently and as both a book lover and someone that runs two book clubs I was immediately smitten with it.  How great would it be to host your favourite fellow book lovers to a dinner and book chat using this tableware?

Then I started hinking about how very few of us every treat our selves to nice or interesting  dishes and why is that? When you were a kid did you have dishes or utensils that were just yours? Maybe a Barbie plate or Bunnykins, maybe a cup or utensils with a favourite character on them? I did. I remember when we were young my sister and I had a set of utensils with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy on the handles. Similar to this set.

I also had my own set of Bunnykins dishes and when we were a little bit older we had these little plastic mugs that a toy Pebbles and BamBam hooked on to.  I remember too having our own tea cup and saucer at Grandma’s place and when we went to visit she would make us tea (very weak mostly milk and some sugar) and give us cookies so we could have tea and cookies with the adults while they talked.  Or the time when I had the Chicken Pox and she made me tea and toast.

When I see those items now safely tucked away but visible in my Mom’s china cupboard it makes me smile and wonder why is it that as a society we don’t often do these types of things anymore. We have become such a throw away society that we forget to save and pass down to the following generations some of the great moments we had. Whether it be our childhood dishes, a favourite toy, a skipping game or a song you sing in the round. Maybe it’s Grandma’s china or tea set or a a song you’re favourite Aunt used to sing to you on car rides.

I urge you to share these memories and moments with the kids in your life. It always makes me smile to see my great nephew using those old Disney character utensils or when my nieces and nephews were little kids to teach them songs my Aunt taught me.

 

On an unrelated note I found this picture and had to share. So I also urge you to purchase a piece of totally whimsical funiture, something to make you smile every time you see it.

Speed of Light by Amber Kizer

 

Speed of Light is the third book in the Meridian series by Amber Kizer,  a personal favourite of mine. I am always afraid that when I really connect with, really love a book that the follow up will disappoint in some way. Amber Kizer is one of those rare authors who never does.

Speed of Light continues where Wildcat Fireflies left off and delves deeper into both Meridian and Juliet’s family history and what it means for them to be Fenestra. We meet new characters and lose some old ones. I wish I had been taking notes as I read because there were so many lines that I wanted to quote and I’ve forgotten them all.

Ms. Kizer writes as each Fenestra personality dictates so that Meridian’s experiences are all about words and storytelling whereas Juliet’s are focused on food and recipes.  The descriptive phrasing is so vivid you can feel, hear, touch and taste the moments as they happen.

In this story the Fenestra and their friends are battling the Nocti at the Indy 500. Feeling alone and overwhelmed they come to realize that knowledge is power and at Rumi and Tony’s insistence  start “schooling” themselves in the history, mythology and everything else they can find out about themselves and others like them. They discover who has been changing the gravestones and how it is connected to what they do. They learn more about Protector’s and what they can mean to a Fenestra. They learn to trust in themselves and each other more. And they do all this while fighting the dark, continuing  the age old fight of dark against light, good against evil.

At times heart wrenching and distressing it is also filled with beauty and laughter a story brimming with family, friends, and acceptance of each other no matter their differences.

Be warned if you are going to read this book that you set ample amount of time aside and make yourself comfortable as it is incredibly difficult to put down.

5 out of 5 reads.

http://www.amberkizer.com

If you like the Fenestra series try the Gert Garibaldi series. Just like every 13 year old girl I knew had read Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret every 15 or 16 year old young lady you know should read One Butt Cheek at a Time.